D-R / 6-1.0, 191 / 15-Oct-91
Skating: 55 / Skill: 60 / Sense: 70 / Compete: 65 / Toughness: 55
Strengths: Excellent hockey sense. Plays a complete two-way game. Solid puck skills.
Weaknesses: Skating is decent - but you wish it was better for an average sized d-man. Average size. Might not be a lot of upside - what you see is what you get.
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Raw offensive skills that we saw in his first two seasons finally started to come together this year. Moves the puck well and can run the power play. Has a hard shot from the point, but accuracy isn't great - tends to use it to generate rebounds rather than try to hit the corners to beat the goaltender.
Plus skater with decent footspeed, but you wish he were just a bit faster given the offensive style he plays. That said, there's nothing about his stride that is a red flag - backward stride, pivots, overall quickness is all at least a bit above average.
Defensive zone play improved greatly this season. Thinks the game well. Makes the right plays in all three zones. Has a knack for keeping opponents to the outside and filling the seams. Also picked up the physical play, but he's probably not going to be much of a banger in the NHL. However, he has good strength and should be able to hold his own in battles for the puck at the next level.
Summary: Western based scouts are probably underrating this guy a bit since they've seen so much of him in the last three seasons. But his tremendous play during the post season was a reminder of why scouts were so excited about this guy back when he was 16. Safe bet to be a solid 2nd or 3rd pairing guy who can also be a 2nd unit power play regular. The hockey sense just makes him such a safe pick.
That and there is a thought in the back of my brain that he reminds me just a tiny bit of Mike Green at the same age. So I've got a little gut feel that there could be some surprise upside here. I wouldn't hesitate spending a pick in the 20-30 range on this guy, but I might be the only one who likes this guy that much.
Draft Day: Everyone thinks he's going to go right in the middle of the 2nd round, but given how good he was in the playoffs I won't be surprised if he sneaks into the back of the 1st. But 30-45 seems most likely to me.
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